cannabisnews.com: Bid To Decriminalize Marijuana is Debated
Bid To Decriminalize Marijuana is Debated
Posted by CN Staff on February 19, 2006 at 08:33:54 PT
By Jack Spillane, Standard-Times Staff Writer
Source: South Coast Daily
Massachusetts -- Jimmy, a 30-year-old union carpenter from a New Bedford suburb, is fond of smoking a joint with his wife after they have put the kids to bed. Jimmy, who doesn't want to give his real name because smoking marijuana is illegal, said he doesn't drink much, so when he wants to wind down, he uses marijuana. Occasionally, he smokes a little pot during the day, even when driving, he said.
As a regular user, Jimmy said he has built up a tolerance to the substance and claims marijuana doesn't interfere with his daily life. "I think it's a lot safer than drinking," he said. "It doesn't hinder my ability as much as drinking." The area's legislative delegation doesn't agree. Although a joint Senate/House committee has recommended making possession of up to an ounce of marijuana a civil, rather than criminal matter, many members of the area's legislative delegation are against the idea. "When you decriminalize it, you're encouraging people to use it, and to make it even more prevalent in society," said Rep. Robert M. Koczera, who represents part of New Bedford's North End, as well as Acushnet. Mattapoisett Rep. William M. Straus compared decriminalization to eliminating the speed limit. Even though almost everyone violates it, "that doesn't mean you say, 'Let's just not make it a crime,'" he said. Dartmouth Rep. John F. Quinn said it is important to retain the "symbolism" that marijuana is illegal at a time when society is trying to persuade young people not to use illegal drugs. "I'd be opposed to (decriminalization) in our area and in urban areas across the state," he said. "We still have serious drug problems." The legislative committee whose job is to study drug abuse, however, sees the marijuana issue entirely differently. It voted 6-1 last week to recommend decriminalization. State Rep. Ruth B. Balser, a Newton Democrat, said that in the 11 states that have decriminalized possession of small quantities of marijuana in recent years — including Maine and New York — usage rates of the drug and problems associated with it have remained the same. She noted that the proposed legislation still would require parents of minors who are caught with marijuana to be notified. Rep. Balser's committee points to a Drug Policy Forum study that concluded that Massachusetts would save $24.3 million a year by issuing civil fines for marijuana possession instead of bringing criminal charges. The committee wants to redirect the money spent prosecuting marijuana to programs for drug abusers, she said. Alcohol abuse and addiction is a far more pervasive problem than marijuana use, she contends. "The real gateway drug is alcohol," she said. "We have very serious problems with drinking among young people." Under the proposed legislation, those possessing marijuana would automatically pay a $250 fine and avoid the court system. Currently, the crime is punishable by a $500 fine and up to six months in jail for the first offense. Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Tom Reilly has spoken against the bill's softened stance on marijuana possession. In a statement on his Web site, Mr. Reilly said, "That's the wrong message to send to our kids. We have to keep them out of drugs." Bristol County District Attorney Paul F. Walsh Jr. also has called decriminalization "a bad idea." He said marijuana possession already is functionally decriminalized in Massachusetts, with most cases involving the possession of small amounts of the drug being continued without a finding. Those charged do not end up with criminal records and, contrary to what the decriminalization bill's backers say, no one is denied a student loan or rejected from college because of a conviction for a small quantity of marijuana, Mr. Walsh said. "It sounds like a great sob story, but it's just not true," he said. A prosecutor for more than two decades, Mr. Walsh said he doubts the state spends anywhere near $24 million on marijuana possession cases. And although it might be true that alcohol and marijuana are gateway drugs, alcohol is legal and the country is certainly not returning to prohibition, he said. If marijuana possession is decriminalized, the drug will become more prevalent, Mr. Walsh said. "Do we really want a society that has more of this stuff in it?" he asked. The Committee on Mental Health and Substance Abuse would be better off focusing on the growing popularity of methamphetamine, a highly addictive and dangerous drug, the district attorney contended. Despite widespread opposition, supporters of marijuana decriminalization say they are determined to press forward. Steven Epstein, a North Shore lawyer who founded the Massachusetts Cannabis Reform Coalition, said he is not sure that the proposed bill will pass in the House this session. "We'd hope it would happen sooner or later," he said. Classifying marijuana possession as a crime is burdensome to taxpayers, Mr. Epstein argued. "When you treat marijuana users as criminals, the result is that you are subsidizing the legal costs" of prosecuting them, he said. A better plan would be to make those who possess marijuana pay a fine, then split the revenue from those fines with cities and towns, he said. Allen St. Pierre, the executive director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), said that although marijuana possession is not usually prosecuted in Massachusetts, the law is not always enforced fairly. Mr. St. Pierre, who grew up in Chatham, said people in Massachusetts can still lose their motor vehicle licenses and even go to jail for a possession conviction, depending on the inclination of the prosecutor and the judge. Decriminalization would solve the fairness issue, he said. "For both law enforcement and citizens, it brings predictability to the law." One in three Americans live in a state where marijuana possession has been decriminalized, Mr. St. Pierre said. In states such as Oregon, California, Arizona and others, decriminalization has won easily at the ballot box and in the polls. Still, decriminalization usually is not adopted by state legislatures until they perceive overwhelming support among the public, he said. It is only a matter of time before the law is changed, Mr. St. Pierre said. "Massachusetts is already closer to decriminalization than most states," he said. Rep. Koczera, however, said his constituents are more interested in his focusing on more substantive issues, such as universal health care and economic expansion, than on marijuana decriminalization. His legislative colleagues agreed with him, wondering why the joint committee concentrated on an issue such as decriminalization. "Bills like this have been filed in the past and they've never had any kind of support," Rep. Koczera said. "Quite frankly, I'm surprised the committee reported it out favorably." Source: South Coast Daily (MA)Author: Jack Spillane, Standard-Times Staff Writer Published: February 19, 2006 - Page A07 Copyright: 2006 The Standard-TimesContact: jspillane s-t.com Website: http://www.southcoasttoday.com/Related Articles & Web Sites:NORMLhttp://www.norml.org/DPFMAhttp://www.dpfma.org/MassCannhttp://www.masscann.org/Pot Bill Lights Up Debatehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread21596.shtmlLegislative Panel Backs Bill To Decriminalize http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread21593.shtmlTime for Serious Talk About Pothttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20901.shtml
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Comment #11 posted by Sam Adams on February 20, 2006 at 15:50:33 PT
driving
whig - yeah, you're right, I didn't even really see the part about driving, it would have been nice if Jimmy kept his mouth shut about driving, I don't think anyone wants to suggest that it's OK to drive high (although I've done it hundreds of times as well).Of course, we are living in a country that is quite happy to elect a president that is a drunk driver.
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Comment #10 posted by Hope on February 20, 2006 at 07:08:06 PT
Messages to kids
Is this the substance of lawmaking? Sending messages to kids?It's a good message to say to kids, "If we catch you with this plant matter...we will arrest, shackle, ridicule you, humiliate you, imprison you, tell you "you are sick", fine you, see if we can't get you a prison rape to live with, marginalize you, refuse to help you get an education, take your stuff and give you a CRIMINAL record, for the "crime" we dreamed up and we will do everything we can to ruin the rest of your life if we possibly can?"That's the message they are getting.
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Comment #9 posted by John Tyler on February 20, 2006 at 06:53:35 PT
unequal justice?
"He said marijuana possession already is functionally decriminalized in Massachusetts, with most cases involving the possession of small amounts of the drug being continued without a finding." "Those charged do not end up with criminal records and, contrary to what the decriminalization bill's backers say, no one is denied a student loan or rejected from college because of a conviction for a small quantity of marijuana," Mr. Walsh said.If this is the case as Mr. Walsh says, then why does he have a problem with real, actual, legal decriminalization? Could it be that he wants to be able continue unequeal prosecution? The poor and minoritues get a "screw job", while the wealthy and well connected get off? Is that the kind of state Mr. Walsh wants to have, a state of unequal justice?
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Comment #8 posted by Hope on February 20, 2006 at 06:48:14 PT
The area's legislative delegation doesn't agree.
That's the problem. They make the laws and they don't know a darn true thing about it. That's not right.
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Comment #7 posted by whig on February 20, 2006 at 06:30:53 PT
Sam
Even though we may know cannabis is not so impairing as to make driving as dangerous as under the effects of alcohol, I do think we'd be pushing the line too much right now to expect that this be considered acceptable behavior.
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Comment #6 posted by Sam Adams on February 19, 2006 at 21:50:18 PT
idiots
I'm not sure who's more of an idiot, these legislators or the people that voted for them.What I see here is a standard trick of the government parasitic folk: Blame the results of the current policy on those people who are trying to change them. If 50% of high school kids ADMIT to using cannabis, isn't it time we acknowledge that the "symbolism" of the drug laws has failed miserably? Nice journalism, too, by the way. I'm so glad they printed the prosecutor's comment "it's a bad idea". Wow! So insightful! So thought-provoking! So educational!It's so easy for the media to attack reform. All you have to do is call a bunch of prosecutors, police chiefs, and forced "treatment" counselors and print their quotes.Isn't it interesting that the toking carpenter mentioned at the beginning is actually paying the salary of almost everyone else quoted? He gets up every morning to go work his butt off and these scumbags take his money and then send the police to throw him in jail.
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Comment #5 posted by OverwhelmSam on February 19, 2006 at 15:58:37 PT
Actually, I Would Probably Smoke Less
Under the current legal status of marijuana, I get it and smoke it up so I don't get caught with any on me. If it were legal and regulated, I would probably just pick a joint up every other weekend. I don't like to stay high all the time, I've got other things to do.
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Comment #4 posted by b4daylight on February 19, 2006 at 15:08:22 PT
illogical
Dartmouth Rep. John F. Quinn said it is important to retain the "symbolism" that marijuana is illegal at a time when society is trying to persuade young people not to use illegal drugs.Mattapoisett Rep. William M. Straus compared decriminalization to eliminating the speed limit. Even though almost everyone violates it, "that doesn't mean you say, 'Let's just not make it a crime,'" he said.Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Tom Reilly has spoken against the bill's softened stance on marijuana possession. In a statement on his Web site, Mr. Reilly said, "That's the wrong message to send to our kids. We have to keep them out of drugs."Bristol County District Attorney Paul F. Walsh Jr. also has called decriminalization "a bad idea."He said marijuana possession already is functionally decriminalized in Massachusetts, with most cases involving the possession of small amounts of the drug being continued without a finding. *************************************************************************
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Rep. William M. Straus needs to check out the book Alchol prohibition. I sure we can make it not a crime since every one drinks it.Rep. John F. Quinn the symbol man Presuade pleans tell them the truth. Tom Reilly what a joke who keeps kids out of drugs. I would rather my kids not want drugs. He by the way he sends messages in a bottle ok mybe not.Bristol County District Attorney Paul F. Walsh Jr.
Funny cause he contradicted everyone who I joked with. He would know right???
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on February 19, 2006 at 13:43:32 PT
This is a Problem - Cannabis Isn't
Pills Responsible for More Than Half of N.H. Drug Deaths in 2005 ***By Noah Farr February 19, 2006Sam can list the friends he knows who’ve had their lives ruined by prescription pills as if he were reading from a telephone book. “Dave, Rachel, Eli,” Sam said. “OxyContin became a problem for my entire extended friend network. It took over us like the plague.” Sam (not his real name), 22, a graduate from a small public high school in New Hampshire, has been living and working for his father in Brentwood ever since admitting two weeks ago to a three-year OxyContin addiction. “I’ve been to hell and back,” he said. “But there are still people right here in this town that are slaves to it.” Complete Article: http://www.seacoastonline.com/news/hampton/02192006/news/88724.htm
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Comment #2 posted by runderwo on February 19, 2006 at 13:20:14 PT
No Comment
"If marijuana possession is decriminalized, the drug will become more prevalent, Mr. Walsh said. "Do we really want a society that has more of this stuff in it?" he asked."Hmmmm. I don't think the answer is obviously what he thinks it is.
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Comment #1 posted by runderwo on February 19, 2006 at 13:17:58 PT
yawn
""When you decriminalize it, you're encouraging people to use it, and to make it even more prevalent in society," said Rep. Robert M. Koczera, who represents part of New Bedford's North End, as well as Acushnet."This is wild speculation. How many people have never used marijuana because it is illegal, but otherwise would? As far as I can tell, the illegality is not stopping anyone who is interested, since availability has not been impacted at all no matter how much the supply side is attacked.Also, no mention of what we are "encouraging" by keeping inhumane penalties in place. It's another statement that blithely assumes away the costs of the drug war.
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